the other side of paradise - Amnesty International · Mohamed Waheed, Nasheed’s former deputy and now new President, countered this, saying that Nasheed’s resignation had been

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the other sideof paradiseA humAn rights crisis

in the mAldives

To many, the Maldives are a paradise on

earth – an archipelago of islands lying like

a jewelled necklace in the Indian Ocean.

Tourists arrive in their droves – at least two

for every Maldivian in the country –

escaping to the islands’ unspoilt beaches

and temperate waters.

But a campaign of violent repression this

year has shattered this idyllic image,

exposing a human rights crisis that has

gripped the country since President

Mohamed Nasheed’s ousting in February

2012.

Just hours before his disputed resignation

on 7 February, the police and military

unleashed targeted attacks on Nasheed’s

supporters. Protests were violently crushed

– with the apparent approval of the

incoming government. This campaign of

violence effectively silenced government

critics and any public debate about

Nasheed’s ouster. Public spaces, once

open to peaceful expressions of social or

political dissent, became places of terror.

While these human rights violations

unfolded, the new government initially

received tacit support from some members

of the international community including the

UN, the USA and India.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon voiced

his “strong hope that this handover of

power, which has been announced as a

constitutional step to avoid further violence

and instability, will lead to the peaceful

resolution of the political crisis that has

polarized the country in recent months”.

The USA, India and others followed suit.

When Amnesty International and media

reports revealed the police and military

attacks on Maldivian citizens, the

international community modified its

approach.

A US State Department spokesperson

admitted to the media: “I got myself in a

place yesterday that was not borne out

by the facts… We will work with the

government of the Maldives, but believe

that the circumstances surrounding the

transfer of power need to be clarified. And

we also suggest that all parties agree to an

independent mechanism to do that”.

The new authorities claimed that the

transfer of state power on 7 February was

to uphold constitutional rights. However,

security forces have become increasingly

politicized and unaccountable for the

violence they have been using against

opposition protesters – flouting

constitutional protections.

Amnesty International has spoken with

scores of Maldivians about the violence

around 7 February, including during a

three-week visit to the country in February

and early March 2012. Among them are

survivors of human rights violations and

their families, lawyers, journalists, activists,

medical professionals, security officials and

senior politicians, including former

President Nasheed and current President

Mohamed Waheed. During many of these

conversations, survivors told us that security

forces used unnecessary force, and

arbitrarily arrested and tortured them

with impunity.

The picture they paint is completely at odds

with the tranquility of the waters and scenic

islands of this elegant archipelago.

amnesty international september 2012 index: AsA 29/005/2012

“We were not doing anything, but they attacked me. They hit me

on my head. I put my hands over my head and they hit me on my

hands. The force they were using to hit me would have certainly

broken my skull if I had not put my hands on my head.”

A demonstrator who was beaten by police on 8 February in malé. his fingertips were torn and his flesh was gouged to the bone

in the attack.

It is also at odds with the pledges made

directly to Amnesty International by the

authorities in February and March 2012

that human rights violations committed

during and after the transfer of power would

be addressed.

disputed resignationOn 7 February, Mohamed Nasheed, former

Amnesty International prisoner of

conscience and the first democratically

elected president of the Maldives, read out

his own resignation letter to the nation. The

event was broadcast live on state television

networks.

Following the announcement, Nasheed

disappeared. Some media reports claimed

he was in protective custody. When he

eventually re-surfaced, he told thousands

of his supporters – who had gathered to

meet him near his party’s headquarters –

that he had been forced to resign at

gunpoint. He said that mutinying police

and military forces had deposed him.

Mohamed Waheed, Nasheed’s former

deputy and now new President, countered

this, saying that Nasheed’s resignation had

been voluntary.

For the new government, his resignation

was the desired outcome of months of anti-

Nasheed campaigning by parties opposed

to him. These parties, in one form or

another, are allied to former President

Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, whose 30-year

rule (1978-2008) was marked by serious

human rights violations for which no one

has been brought to justice.

For more than 27 years of Gayoom’s rule,

there were no opposition parties. Following

sustained international and national

pressure, he agreed to some political

reforms. He revised the Constitution in

August 2008 and launched the first multi-

party presidential elections two months

later. Although Gayoom lost the presidency

to Nasheed, his supporters won a majority

of seats in Parliament in 2009.

What followed was a political impasse.

Nasheed’s government was unable to make

key budgetary decisions, including on

improving social welfare, because

Parliament refused to endorse his proposals.

These developments highlighted a deep

political and social division in the country.

Nasheed supporters say they are more

open to social and political freedoms than

their opponents. They support equal rights

for minorities and religious tolerance in the

country. Women supporters are active in

pressing for political reform, and are

determined to achieve political parity

with men.

The governing camp under President

Waheed is politically allied to Maumoon

Abdul Gayoom; most of the current

Cabinet ministers have, or have had, close

ties with him.

In private conversations with Amnesty

International, many supporters of this camp

expressed bitterness about the democratic

process that allowed Gayoom’s main

opponent, Mohamed Nasheed, to come to

power in 2008. Some believe that Maldives’

troubles began with the advent of a multi-

party system. The Minister of Gender, Family

and Human Rights has already called on

Parliament to provide guidelines on how to

dissolve some of the political parties.

the Other side OF PArAdise

A humAn rights crisis in the mAldives

index: AsA 29/005/2012 amnesty international september 2012

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Maldivian riot police officers stand guard as

they block supporters of the ousted Maldivian

president Mohamed Nasheed during a clash

in Malé, 8 February 2012. © R

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The government continues to call for

reconciliation between the two political

camps. But without an end to – and

accountability for – human rights violations,

such reconciliation would be meaningless

and may not last.

Government officials have frequently

shrugged off their own responsibility to

address human rights violations, saying

it is the purview of the Human Rights

Commission of the Maldives (HRCM) and

the Police Integrity Commission. However,

both bodies have yet to conclude their

investigations into all of the most serious

human rights violations that have occurred

this year in Malé and Addu. And any

reliance on these bodies to deal with

ongoing human rights violations does not

absolve the government of its responsibility

to exercise due diligence in guaranteeing

the rule of law and protecting human rights.

sweePing viOlAtiOns

Activists and supporters of Nasheed’s

Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) have

described sustained beatings suffered at

the hands of security forces. Time and

again, survivors have told Amnesty

International how members of the police

and military have used unnecessary force

against peaceful demonstrators, striking

them on the head with truncheons, pepper-

spraying them in the eyes, and kicking and

dragging them.

They have also told us that they have been

targeted because of their political affiliation.

Some have been arbitrarily detained and

tortured.

The overall objective of these violent acts

has been to silence peaceful government

critics and stifle public debate about the

current political situation.

unnecessAry use OF FOrce

As news of a police mutiny spread on

7 February, hundreds of MDP supporters

began making their way peacefully to

Republic Square, in Malé, the capital.

Among them were MDP members of

parliament (MPs).

Several demonstrators told Amnesty

International that, suddenly, scores of police

officers set upon them with batons, striking

them on the head and kicking them on the

legs, back and stomach. Dozens were

injured.

“I was hit and fell down,” said MP Eva

Abdulla. “My husband came to me and

helped me get up and we started running.

One policeman in riot gear hit me once.

Shortly after, he hit me repeatedly. When I

fell on the ground, a plain-clothes officer in

a T-shirt came and beat me. He and other

police kicked me with their boots. They hit

me on my head and shoulder and kicked

me. A young man tried to stop them. I saw

them going for him. I still get pains in my

head. I think they would have killed me if

it had not been for my husband who threw

himself on me trying to take the blows. He

was beaten badly and had a broken knee.”

Ismail Manik, an MDP supporter, collapsed

after police beat him on the head. Lying on

the ground, semi-conscious, he was kicked

in the ribs and beaten further by police.

When he regained consciousness, they beat

him again.




4

Ismail Manik

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On the afternoon of 8 February, thousands

of supporters held a street rally in Malé,

after attending the MDP National Congress

earlier that day and listening to Mohamed

Nasheed speak.

Protesters congregated in large numbers in

the streets, chanting slogans condemning

what they said had been a coup against

former President Nasheed. According to

demonstrators interviewed by Amnesty

International, although the gathering was

initially peaceful, police in riot gear aided by

plain-clothes officers and a violent mob of

counter-demonstrators attacked them.

Police used batons, wooden sticks and tear

gas against demonstrators. Several

protesters were critically injured.

“They came from behind me so I could not

tell where the next blow was coming,” said

Ahmed Shamah Rasheed, Deputy Mayor

of Malé, who was among a group of

demonstrators gathered in

Boduthakurufaanu street in Malé that

afternoon. “I placed my hands firmly on my

head but they continued to hit my hands

and fingers. I fell down.

“Police continued to beat me everywhere

as I fell on my back. I pulled my knees up

to protect my stomach and my face, but

they continued beating me with their batons

all over my body... I saw my wife collapse

on the ground, surrounded by two police

officers, sobbing and crying but I did not

have the strength to go up to her...

Someone from the crowd shouted: ‘Do not

hit him. He is our deputy mayor’. The

policeman who was beating me said: ‘I

don’t care!’ They kept telling me they were

going to kill me.”

Targeted for political affiliationBased on Amnesty International’s interviews

with survivors of these violent attacks, it

appears that many were targeted by

security forces because they were MDP

ministers, parliamentarians or supporters.

MP Mariya Ahmed Didi, a senior member

of the MDP, was among the hundreds who

had gathered on 7 February to show their

concern for former President Nasheed. She

told Amnesty International that while there,

she noticed several police officers pointing

at her, and one of them was telling the other

to “hit her in the head, kill her”. Police then

charged at her and began to beat her,

especially on her head.

She lost her balance and fell to the ground

but the beating did not stop. Her husband

and friends threw themselves on top of her,

fearing for her life. Mariya Didi heard one

policeman saying: “Don’t hit the ones on

top, just hit Mariya”.

“I had bruises all over my body, my back,

head, and legs,” she said. “I had a swollen

black eye, and could not see much. I still

[a month later] have blurred vision.”

Mohamed Shafeeg, a senior MDP member,

businessman, and former nominee for the

office of Vice-President, was at the rally in

Malé on 8 February.

“I knew I was being targeted,” he said.

“Police in plain clothes were watching me.

Then for no reason, they began to hit me.”

He saw two plain-clothes officers giving

signals to eight uniformed police in riot gear

to hit some of the people in the crowd. One

of the plain-clothes men pointed his finger

at him.




5

Above left: A group of activists, some of whom

were attacked during a demonstration in Addu

on 26 February 2012, sketch a map showing

how the attack took place.

Below from left to right: A man shows marks

from a beating by police during a raid against

an MDP rally in Malé, early March 2012;

Eva Abdulla.

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“One plain-clothes officer came to me and

asked if I wanted to be the President,” he

recalled. “I said, ‘No, why?’ He said I was

lying and began to hit me himself. Then he

showed me to the police officers who were

hitting [other] people. They came and

pepper-sprayed me.”

By targeting MDP members and

supporters, the security forces – and by

extension, the state – have displayed a

deliberate intention to crush political

opponents, reversing some of the political

freedoms of the last three years.

Attacked in hospitalThose interviewed by Amnesty International

consistently stated that attacks by police

continued beyond the streets. Some of the

injured who were taken to hospital for

treatment were arrested there and beaten or

otherwise ill-treated on the way to detention

centres. Many of the injured chose not to go

to hospital for fear of arrest. Still others were

attacked in their hospital beds.

Mohamed Amir, a demonstrator, had been

beaten severely by police and military

officers, and left bloody and battered on

the ground. “I went to hospital,” he said,

“but saw police beating the injured, so I

turned back and went home.”

After the attack on Ahmed Shamah

Rasheed, Deputy Mayor of Malé, some

of the demonstrators took him to hospital.

“Even in that state, I could not stay in

hospital,” he said. “Police were already

beating patients who had been injured

during the rally. They were only searching

for MDP supporters. I was helped out of

hospital unnoticed, by my family. Most

injured people did the same. It was too

dangerous to stay in hospital. I want to go

to court but where can I go? Judges are on

their side and will never give a verdict

against the criminals who beat me. ”

ArbitrAry detentiOn And tOrture

Hundreds of people were arrested, most of

them injured by the police, on 8 February.

They were taken from the streets, their

hospital beds and from their homes. Almost

one third of the detainees were women.

They were ill-treated at the time of their

arrest and on their way to police stations.

Detainees were later taken to Dhoonidhoo

detention centre on speed boats while

handcuffed. They were not told the grounds

for their arrest and were not allowed access

to their lawyers. Many of the injured were

not offered a medical check-up for several

hours. When this was available, some

agreed to be checked. Others refused as

they did not trust the police doctors. Almost

all of them were released within days of

their arrest.

“They continued to beat me as they were

handcuffing me and after I was

handcuffed,” said Mohamed Shafeeg, who

was detained at the 8 February rally. “My

eyes were burning with the pepper spray

they had sprayed directly into my eyes, but

with the handcuffs I could not even touch

my eyes. They kept me in that position for

about an hour at the police station. There

were many other people in handcuffs. They

all looked injured. Then they took us to

Dhoonidhoo detention centre.”

MP Mariya Ahmed Didi, still in pain from

the police beating she received the day

before, was also detained at the rally.

“They… continued beating me with my




6

“As we were in the hospital I

heard and saw uniformed

policemen charging in. They

were hitting people who had

been injured, hitting them

especially on their head. We

left the hospital quietly, but I

saw two police officers

marching into the emergency

room.”

mP mariya didi, who was injured by police during a

demonstration on 7 February 2012.

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handcuffs on,” she said. “They were

beating me with batons. Police and military

officers then forcefully opened my eyelids.

They went for the eye that had been injured

the day before. They sprayed pepper spray

directly into my eye. Then they did the

same with my other eye. They then sprayed

into my nose as they were also beating me.

They then took me to a police station and

continued to beat me there. I have bruises

all over my body. At one point when they

were beating me one of them shouted: ‘Is

she still not dead?’”

Violence by security forces spilled into Addu

city on 9 February 2012, following a series

of arson attacks allegedly by MDP

supporters. Addu became an MDP

stronghold during Mohamed Nasheed’s

presidency, when significant investment

bolstered the city’s development.

Part of the police headquarters and a court

building were burnt down in the fires. A day

later – before an official investigation into

the cause of the attacks was ordered, police

and military forces swept into the city,

arresting at least 80 people. People were

not told the reason for their arrest.

Witnesses and survivors told Amnesty

International that officers arbitrarily detained

people, beating them up and humiliating

them. They crammed detainees onto

military vehicles and left them in the blazing

sun for more than an hour with the windows

and doors closed. They denied detainees

drinking water and threw them into

cramped and filthy dog cages.

Article 238 of the Maldives Constitution

specifies that security forces must act in

accordance with the Constitution and the

law, and on the basis of accountability.

Under the 2008 Police Act, officers must

not act “cruelly, in a degrading manner,

inhumanely or mercilessly towards any

person in any circumstance”. Article 238 of

the Constitution also requires the President

to ensure that the police act according to

the laws governing them.

The Maldives is also obliged under

international human rights law, including

the International Covenant on Civil and

Political Rights (ICCPR) and the UN

Convention against Torture and Other Cruel,

Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or

Punishment (UNCAT), to protect everyone’s

right to freedom of expression and right of

peaceful assembly, and to prevent torture

and other ill-treatment.

To comply with these treaties, Maldives law

enforcement officials must respect the UN

Basic Principles on the Use of Force and

Firearms. They cannot resort to violent

means until they have exhausted all non-

violent ones. Where the use of force is

unavoidable, they must minimize damage and

injury, and ensure that anyone who is injured

is given medical treatment without delay.

The ICCPR and the UNCAT require the

Maldives authorities to prosecute those

suspected of offences involving such

violations, irrespective of rank or status,

in proceedings which meet international

standards of fairness.

Despite these safeguards, police and

military officers consistently told detainees

that what they were doing to them was not

against the law, and that they deserved

what they got. Officers showed utter

disregard for human rights and the rule

of law, and the government has failed to

ensure accountability.




7

Left: Police beating Mohamed Shafeeg in Malé,

8 February 2012. He was taking part in a

peaceful rally to protest against the ousting of

President Mohamed Nasheed.

Far left above: Mariya Ahmed Didi

Far left below: Mohamed Shafeeg©

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“i was not told why i was being arrested.

they drove me to a burnt down place which i

think was gan police station. on the way, the

officers were insulting the Mdp, saying that they

wanted to wipe it out. there they pepper-

sprayed my eyes again and put me in a cell.

it was very busy and i could hear screams and

shouts of people being tortured outside. they

would come and question me regularly about

what i had seen, threatening to destroy me, to

cut off my manhood and to make me

handicapped on my release.

Later we were taken back to gan police station

and were put in the same cell. the next morning

i requested to see a doctor as my leg was in

pain. around 10.30 to 11am they came to take

me to the doctor, along with two other people.

the cuffs were tightened to the extreme and i

requested for them to be loosened up but the

officer said he was deaf... in the hospital, they

informed us that we did not have an

appointment, and so we were taken straight out

again. the police... drove us to another police

station which was also burned down.

We were kept inside the jeep, which was left

under the sun, and had to sit with our backs

against each other. it was extremely hot and

they had closed all of the windows. My sweat

was stinging all over my body; my tongue was

dry and i was very thirsty. the police were

outside, drinking and eating…

i was detained [by the police]… for 15 days,

without any contact from the outside world.

then police came in their riot gear and told all

detainees to come out. they said they were

going to send us out of the island.

about 22 of us were taken into a big van, and in

groups of five to six people we were put in dog

cages. the cages were 6x6 feet and had bones,

and were dirty, making it very uncomfortable to

sit in. it was difficult to use the toilet as we were

cuffed and so could not take our pants off.”

Mohamed Saeed was arrested at his home

on 9 February in Addu. Officers threatened

to set his car and shop on fire, beat him,

and pepper-sprayed him in the eyes.




8

“We can bring your wife and

kids and set them on fire in

front of you”

mohamed saeed’s torturers, February 2012.

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Maldivian police officers stand guard as a

protester shouts slogans during a rally in Malé,

1 March 2012.

iMpunityFrom 7-9 February police officers were

effectively engaged in a violent campaign

against members and supporters of the

MDP. It appears that they were acting with

the understanding that they would not be

held accountable for their actions by the

new government.

And this is in fact what has happened. No

police officers involved in the February

attacks or in violence against demonstrators

in recent protests have been brought to

justice. The government of Maldives has

shrugged off its own responsibility for

enforcing accountability, saying it is not

its job to address human rights violations.

Instead, it has attempted to offload

responsibility onto institutions such as the

Human Rights Commission of the Maldives

or the Police Integrity Commission.

The fact remains that not a single criminal

case has been filed before a court against

any of the police officers for committing

these human rights violations.

the MiLitary and poLiceUntil recently, Maldives did not have a

separate police force and the military was

in charge of both policing and external

security. A police force composed of former

army officers was created in 2004.

However, the line between the

responsibilities of the two remains blurred.

The military is almost always engaged in

policing and the police rarely distance

themselves from the military. Their

symbiotic relationship has enabled them

to defer accountability.

Despite mounting evidence, especially in

2012, that officers belonging to both forces

have committed human rights violations,

none has been brought to justice.

At times, police officers have been injured,

some seriously, by objects thrown during

the protests. Police have said the force they

have used against demonstrators has been

in response to these attacks, and

proportionate.

Amnesty International does not condone the

use of violence by demonstrators. It does

also believe, however, that security officials

have often used excessive force during

those violent demonstrations, in addition to

using force that was entirely unnecessary in

the face of peaceful protests.




9

“I have not complained

because there is no guarantee

that it would make a difference

to those who beat me.”

mP mohamed gasam, who was beaten and detained by

police on 8 February in malé.

One of several tear gas grenades thrown by

police at peaceful demonstrators inside the

headquarters of the MDP in Addu, late

February 2012. Tear gas and pepper spray have

frequently been used by Maldives police

against peaceful demonstrators. Police have

forced detainees to open their eyes and then

sprayed them. Arms-supplying states should

deny the authorization to transfer weapons,

munitions and other equipment where there is

a substantial risk that they are likely to be used

to commit or facilitate serious human rights

violations.

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coMMission of nationaLinquiryDays after Mohamed Nasheed’s resignation,

the international community, including the

Commonwealth, EU, India, UN and USA,

called for an investigation into the events

surrounding his ouster.

In response, President Waheed formed the

Commission of National Inquiry (the

Commission) on 22 February to investigate

events during the period 14 January to 8

February.

In April 2012, the government reconstituted

the Commission after the Commonwealth

Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) and others

voiced dismay that the Commission’s

membership was not independent and

impartial.

Huge challenges remain, including the

protection of witnesses before the

Commission. Crucially also, the

Commission’s efforts as of July 2012

suggest that this mechanism is unlikely to

provide any redress for victims of human

rights violations by Maldives security forces.

Bias in the justice systeMThe Maldives judicial system includes trial

courts, a high court and a supreme court.

There is no codified body of laws capable

of providing justice equally to all. Most laws

are remnants of an outdated judicial system

inherited from the 30-year rule of Maumoon

Abdul Gayoom. Others are regulations by

ministries and acts that Parliament has

passed in recent years.

Some laws are too vaguely formulated to

prevent miscarriages of justice. Most judges

have no formal training in law, yet exercise

considerable discretion – often based on

their own interpretation of Islamic law – in

determining any offence and its appropriate

punishment. Judges have discretionary

powers to refer to articles of the Constitution

in reaching a verdict but the extent to which

this power is used cannot be established. A

draft penal code intended to address these

shortcomings remains dormant in

Parliament.

Most judges are appointees of Gayoom, who

had considerable power over the judicial

system as president and head of the

judiciary. All judges serving on 7 August

2008, when the new Constitution came into

force, were to be evaluated by the Judicial

Services Commission within two years and

reappointed “in accordance with law”.

Before such a law was passed, the Judicial

Services Commission drew up its own

regulations which enabled it to reappoint all

judges without seriously scrutinizing their

qualifications.

Broken records – huManrights under tWo presidentsWhile the scale of human rights violations

during Mohamed Nasheed’s tenure

decreased significantly, at least two cases

of arbitrary arrest and detention during his

time remained unaddressed. There are also

allegations that police used tear gas and

other such force against some

demonstrators on 6 February, the last day

of his presidency.

Nasheed’s government also failed to ensure

justice to victims and survivors of human

rights violations committed during

Maumoon Abdul Gayoom’s rule.




10

Amnesty International visited this detention

centre in Addu in late February 2012. Dozens

of political detainees had been held for varying

periods since the ousting of President

Mohamed Nasheed.

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Maumoon Abdul Gayoom had

considerable authority over state

institutions in the Maldives. He was the

president, head of the judiciary and the

highest religious authority in the country.

His government was able to evade

accountability for many human rights

violations during his time.

These included torture and other ill-

treatment, unfair trials of political

opponents, arbitrary arrests and months

or years in detention, and frequent use of

unnecessary or excessive force against pro-

democracy activists.

The only known exception was an inquiry

into the deaths of prisoners in Maafushi

prison in 2003, which Gayoom announced

after unprecedented civil protests in

September that year. The inquiry concluded

in December that the deaths were the result

of an abuse of power by prison guards.

Subsequently, charges were brought

against a number of security personnel,

the prison system was reorganized, and

a prison oversight committee was

established.

Other than that, human rights violators in

all levels of government managed to evade

justice.

continuing vioLationsThe police and military have frequently

attacked peaceful demonstrators since

Nasheed’s ouster. This includes the

detention, beating and sexual harassment

of four women participating in an anti-

government rally on 28 March, and further

beatings, pepper-spraying and arrests of

protestors on 11 June.

Government leaders have not shown

commitment to ensuring such human rights

violations are investigated. On the contrary,

the government has simply deferred

responsibility to the Maldives police itself.

And the police in turn have dismissed

concerns raised repeatedly by Amnesty

International.

Violence by security forces in the Maldives

therefore continues unchecked.

In July, the UN High Commissioner for

Human Rights voiced concern at the violent

protests and excessive use of force by

security forces: “These include the

seemingly deliberate and uncalled-for use

of some kind of spray on former President

Nasheed, and the driving of police vehicles

at high speed into crowds of protestors.

Such actions deserve immediate

investigation, and firm action should be

taken by the authorities against those

responsible for excessive use of force.”




11

A political detainee in Addu tells Amnesty

International how he was severely beaten by

three police officers, who repeatedly pepper-

sprayed his eyes, February 2012.

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recoMMendations

To the Maldives authorities

Instruct all security forces not to attack

demonstrators. Any use of force must comply

with international standards for the

protection of the right to life and security

of person.

Ensure prompt, independent, impartial

and effective investigations into allegations

of violence by officials. Those suspected of

offences involving such violations,

irrespective of rank or status, must be

prosecuted in proceedings which meet

international standards of fairness. Survivors

must be ensured reparations.

Train security forces to comply with

international standards including the UN

Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement

Officials and the UN Basic Principles

on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law

Enforcement Officials.

Remove any bias in the police force, so

they act as officers of law without prejudice,

and do not take sides politically.

Reform the criminal justice system so

that it develops into an independent and

impartial power capable of providing justice

to survivors of human rights violations

regardless of their beliefs or political

affiliation.

To the UN, the Commonwealth of Nations,

the EU and foreign governments

Closely monitor the human rights situation

in the Maldives, and press the government to

ensure everyone is able to realize their rights

to protest freely, access justice and be free

from torture and other ill-treatment.

Provide assistance to the Maldives

authorities to carry out human rights training

to judges, prosecutors and law enforcement

officials, as well as to revise its criminal

justice system to ensure that it is in line

with international human rights law and

standards.

huMan rights LossesSince his ouster, Mohamed Nasheed and

his supporters have been calling for early

elections as a solution to the current

political crisis in the country. CMAG has

endorsed this call as have other

international players, including the EU.

President Waheed has said early elections

cannot be held without changing the

Constitution, and the earliest they can be

held is July 2013, just three months before

they are actually due. Others in his cabinet

have voiced different views. In April, during

a visit to London, Dunya Maumoon, Foreign

Affairs State Minister and Gayoom’s

daughter, told the BBC that there would

be no elections in the Maldives for the

“foreseeable future”.

There is a real danger that the human rights

gains of the recent past have been lost; there

are already signs that the country is slipping

back into the old pattern of repression and

injustice. The government of the Maldives

has a responsibility under the Constitution,

as well as international human rights law,

to prevent this from happening. So far it

appears to be failing on these requirements.

The role of the international community

is critical. It must ensure that the new

government demonstrates a commitment

to the promotion and protection of human

rights. If the Maldives now fails on its

human rights path, it will be an indictment

not just of its government, but also of major

players who stood by and remained silent.

12

amnesty international is a global movement of more than 3 millionsupporters, members and activists in more than 150 countries andterritories who campaign to end grave abuses of human rights.

Our vision is for every person to enjoy all the rights enshrined in theuniversal declaration of human rights and other international humanrights standards.

we are independent of any government, political ideology, economic interestor religion and are funded mainly by our membership and public donations.

index: AsA 29/005/2012

english

september 2012

Amnesty internationalinternational secretariatPeter benenson house1 easton streetlondon wc1X 0dwunited Kingdom

amnesty.org

Above: Supporters of former Maldives President

Mohamed Nasheed cheer during a party

meeting in the capital, Malé, 11 February

2012.

Front cover: Maldives beach

© iStockphoto.com/Martin Strmko

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Documents

the other side of paradise - Amnesty International · Mohamed Waheed, Nasheed’s former deputy and now new President, countered this, saying that Nasheed’s resignation had been